Astro-Tourism in Morawa

A Starry Starry Night at Koolanooka Springs - Jeff Henderson for Western Australia Local Government Association (WALGA)

Western Australia is home to some of the darkest night skies in the world. This makes us the envy of star gazers in many other parts of the world including Europe, America, and Asia. We are living in an ever increasing light polluted world where in some brightly lit cities across the globe it is impossible to see one star, let alone the billions and trillions that we can see from our backyards here in Western Australia.  

Since Western Australia is located in the Southern Hemisphere we get to see the best views of the Milky Way Galaxy. We also get to see the quintessential Southern Cross and the Magellanic Clouds which are satellite Galaxies to our own Milky Way Galaxy. In addition, we are also able to see the beautiful Aboriginal constellation referred to as the “Emu in the Sky’.  

Morawa as an Astro-Tourism Town

The Shire of Morawa has recently signed up to be an Astro-Tourism Town. What this means is that the Shire of Morawa will work closely with Carol Redford the Project Manager of the Astro-Tourism Towns. This project seeks to protect the dark sky asset so people can enjoy our amazing night skies for years to come. In addition, Astro-Tourism Towns will also promote our dark sky activities and highlight possible new, or value adding, tourism opportunities across our region.

Carol is continuing to develop the Astro-Tourism Website which has an interactive map identifying Astro-Tourism Towns. It will also show dark sky friendly events coming up across the region. This site will also be further developed to contain additional resources and useful information in the coming months. Like other Astro-Tourism Towns, Morawa will be developing a dedicated viewing site/s where people will be able to come and gaze at our amazing night skies very soon.

To find out more about Astro-Tourism Towns and view the interactive map then visit https://astrotourismwa.com.au